A number of high-profile record companies holds a fifth of the Swedish music service Spotify, documents reveal.

Before the Swedish Spotify, the digital music service widely tipped as a contestant to the dominance of Apple’s music store iTunes, was launched last year a number of record companies bought 18 percent of the company’s stocks.

According to newspaper Computer Sweden, which has got hold of documents that Spotify send to the companies registration office in Luxembourg, the record companies bought the shares for 100,000 kronor (€9.700, $13.900).

The record labels are: Sony BMG (5,8 percent), Universal Music (4,8 percent), Warner Music (3,8 percent) and EMI (1,9 percent). Also Merlin holds a small stake.

Founders Martin Lorentzon and Daniel Ek are the largest owners of the company. Last year the Stockholm-based venture capital companies Northzone Ventures and Creandum invested 130 million kronor in Spotify, according to the document.

Spotify is also close to securing new investment from famous investors including Hong Kong billionaire Li Ka-shing's charitable foundation, the Financial Times reported. Li Ka-shing, Brittish venture capital firm Wellington Partners and other investors are a short way off investing up to $50 million, according to people close to the process. That would value Spotify at $250 million.

Spotify – legally offering instant access to millions of tracks – is looking to raise money to expand in the US, following the enormous hype in Europe.